India is a biodiversity-rich country with four biodiversity hotspots and numerous species of flora and fauna. When it comes to wildlife tourism in India, it is one of the fastest-growing sectors of Indian tourism. People from every corner of the world would like to visit India to see the wonderful wildlife, especially the charismatic species.
When planning a visit to India, travelers often wonder what to look for and which areas to explore, as the country is vast and a single trip cannot encompass all locations; however, it is possible to cover major national parks, tiger reserves, and wildlife sanctuaries in one visit, where many of the charismatic animals and birds can be seen. Here is the list of species you should look for and the places where you can find them.
Tiger (Panthera tigris)
The tiger is the most famous attraction of Indian wildlife, and because of the network of 58 tiger reserves and more than 75% of the world’s tiger population, India is the best place to see tigers in the wild. Not only are there frequent tiger sightings, but some of the tigers have become superstars due to their regular sightings by the visitors. India’s tiger population is growing, and gradually, new tiger reserves are added to the list of tourism attractions.
Tiger reserves like Ranthambore, Corbett, Kanha, Bandhavgarh, Pench, and Tadoba are known for their excellent tiger sightings. Reserves like Satpura, Pilibhit, and Dudhwa are gradually becoming popular because of their increased tiger sightings in recent years.
If you want to see tigers in more than one reserve, then you can plan an itinerary covering two to three reserves of Central India, like Kanha, Bandhavgarh, and Pench. You can also add Corbett or Ranthambore, which is close to Delhi.
Leopard (Panthera pardus)
Leopards are found in many countries around the world, and there are places outside India known for their excellent leopard sightings. In India, a few years back, leopard sightings were not so easy, but recently, some forests have been declared leopard reserves due to their high leopard populations and are now among the best places to see these spotted big cats easily.
Bera Leopard Conservation Reserve near Udaipur and Jhalana Leopard Reserve in Jaipur are two of the best places in Rajasthan to see leopards on a jeep safari. Apart from those, Gir National Park, known for the Asiatic lions, is also a good place to see the leopards. In tiger reserves, Nagarhole, Pench, Sariska, and Ranthambore are known for their good leopard sightings.
Snow leopard (Panthera uncia)
As per the latest report, the population of snow leopard in India is around 718, while worldwide there are 4000-6500 snow leopards left. Though the figure in India is not as impressive as the number of tigers but sightings of the snow leopard even outside the protected areas are very good in India. The number of snow leopards is less because their habitat, which is the high-altitude trans-Himalayas, is smaller in India. Another reason is that most of their habitat is a tough and challenging landscape, which is difficult to reach and place camera trap to count.
Only 3-4 countries out of 12 snow leopard range countries offer good snow leopard sightings, of which India is one. Though the snow leopards are distributed across the whole range of trans-Himalayas in India but most of the sightings are taking place in Ladakh, where their population is good and many homestays, lodges are there to cater to the requirements of tourists.
The itinerary for the snow leopard is at least 10 days, where you need to spend one or two days for acclimatization to the low oxygen level. Also, the climate is very cold, and many times the temperature goes below – 20 degrees Celsius
Asiatic Lions (Panthera leo persica)
Undoubtedly, Africa is the best place to see the lions, but very few people know that India is the only place in the world outside Africa where one can see the wild lions in their natural habitat. The Asiatic lion is a subspecies of lion that was distributed in many parts of India, but due to indiscriminate hunting and habitat destruction, their population has declined, leaving few individuals in a forest known as Gir National Park situated in the westernmost part of India in Gujarat state.
Due to the conservation effort, the lion population has increased, and now there are more than 800 lions found in the greater Gir landscape. There is a plan to shift some of them to the outside of Gir to protect them from any natural calamities or diseases. Gir National Park is situated in Gujarat and can be a part of an itinerary of Central India or Western India. It can also be added to a cultural tour of Rajasthan and/ or Gujarat.
Red Panda (Ailurus fulgens)
Red Panda, one of the cutest animals in the world, is found in the Eastern Himalayan countries, which include India, Nepal, and China. India, especially the border areas near Nepal in Singalila National Park, is the best place in India to see them.
Their population in India and Nepal is increasing due to the conservation effort by the Indian government, especially the conservation breeding program in Darjeeling Zoo. It requires a minimum of 4-5 days’ stay to have a better experience of not only red pandas but also other animals and birds of the Eastern Himalayas. The Red Panda tour can be clubbed with a visit to Kaziranga National Park to see the Indian one-horned Rhinos.
Great Indian One-Horned Rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis)
India hosts the largest population of rhinos (over 80%), and most of them are found in Assam, a northeastern state. Kaziranga National Park, Manas National Park, Jaldapara National Park, Dudhwa National Park, and Pobitora National Park are the best places to see the rhinos in the wild.
Kaziranga is particularly famous for rhinos because it not only has the world’s largest population of rhinos, but it is also known as the park that hosts India’s big five, i.e., Rhinos, Elephants, Wild buffalo, Tigers, and Barasingha. Kaziranga is a national park, a tiger reserve, part of an elephant reserve, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Kaziranga is also famous for its birds and is an important birding area in India. If you want to make an itinerary for Rhinos, you can also add Manas and Pobitora; all the places are good for rhinos.
I hope the above list is useful for you to plan your wildlife safari in India, but this is not the complete list of the species of attraction in India; this is only the first part. In the next part, I am adding more species and places to see them.
